Night hung over the military airfield, lit only by halogen towers and the rhythmic flicker of rotating beacons. Dom stood at the edge of the tarmac, arms crossed, eyes locked on the cargo plane preparing for takeoff. The air was tense with unspoken urgency.
Shaw had escaped custody—again. And this time, he had Mia held hostage aboard that plane.
Letty, conflicted but resolute, loaded a fresh clip into her pistol. "We do this together."
Dom nodded, then looked toward Shepherd, who was scanning the airfield using Lockdown's onboard systems. The black, cybernetic car emitted low-frequency pulses to track heat signatures, sonar, and any signs of Shaw's backup.
"Cargo doors are closing," Shepherd reported. "We've got less than two minutes before wheels up."
Hobbs stepped up beside Dom, shotgun slung over his shoulder. "We stop that plane, or no one walks away clean."
Roman, Tej, Brian, Han, Gisele, Letty, and Shepherd mounted up. Engines revved. Tires screeched. The team launched down the airstrip, chasing the massive cargo plane as it picked up speed.
A Battle in Motion
Brian and Dom closed in from the left, while Letty and Shepherd moved to the right, using Lockdown's advanced agility to dodge small arms fire from Shaw's men atop the rear cargo ramp.
"Letty, go high!" Shepherd shouted.
She nodded, launched off a sloped vehicle ramp, and landed cleanly on the cargo platform midair. Dom followed, ramming a blockade and climbing in through the side panel.
Inside, chaos reigned.
Brian faced off against Adolfson, one of Shaw's top enforcers, while Dom sought out Mia. Letty ducked and rolled under suppressive fire before tackling a guard mid-run, her instincts from the old days kicking in fluidly.
Near the cockpit, Gisele and Han fought their way toward the pilot's cabin. Shaw appeared behind them with his own weapon drawn.
"You never should've come," he sneered.
"You don't know us," Gisele snapped, blasting one of his men in the shoulder.
Outside, Roman and Tej deployed cable harpoons, anchoring two of their cars to the plane's rear ramp. The tethers strained but held as the aircraft fought to climb.
Lockdown veered close. "If we don't slow this down, it's going to take off," the AI warned.
"Then we keep it grounded," Shepherd muttered, jamming Lockdown into gear. He matched the plane's speed, firing pulse shots at its flaps and rear tires. Sparks flew. Hydraulic lines burst.
Sacrifice and Survival
Inside the plane, Gisele fought side by side with Han, but as one of Shaw's goons lunged with a blade, Gisele turned, shot, and slipped.
Han's eyes widened. "Gisele!"
She let go of the cable, falling into darkness as she took the attacker with her. The scream never came—just silence.
Han stood frozen, grief hitting him like a freight train.
On the opposite side, Letty faced Riley—Hobbs' former partner turned traitor. They grappled, fists flying, until Letty grabbed a metal rod and struck Riley hard, knocking her toward an open hatch.
Riley grabbed Letty's vest, trying to pull her out with her.
Letty gritted her teeth. "You made your choice."
She hit the release switch. Riley screamed as she was yanked into the night sky.
Shepherd's Stand
Outside, the plane's nose began to lift. Lockdown's tires burned rubber as Shepherd redirected energy to the wheelbase. "We're out of time!" Lockdown warned.
"Shepherd!" Dom's voice crackled through the comms. "We've got Mia! Shaw's trying to bail with the final cargo!"
"Not today," Shepherd growled.
He accelerated beside Shaw's secondary escape vehicle—an armored side module being deployed from the plane. Using Lockdown's grapple claw, he hooked onto the module and rammed it mid-deployment, crushing it against a fuel truck and sending it into a fiery wreck.
Inside, Shaw was bleeding but still fighting. Dom tackled him, fists flying.
"This is for Letty," Dom said, slamming him into a bulkhead.
"And this is for my family."
One final punch sent Shaw crashing to the floor, unconscious.
The End of the Runway
The plane's structure began to fail. Tej's final cable snapped. Roman shouted, "Everybody off!"
Letty and Dom made it to their Charger. Brian veered his Skyline to intercept. Han, shell-shocked, drove away, silent.
Shepherd stayed until the last second, Lockdown's systems warning him: "Evacuation required."
"Pull back," he commanded.
Lockdown fired a grapple onto a nearby tower, slingshotting the car away from the exploding runway. The plane hit the ground behind them in a fireball that lit up the night sky.
Aftermath
Hours later, the crew regrouped. Shaw was presumed dead. Mia was safe. Letty, finally still, stood beside Dom with tears in her eyes.
"I remember," she whispered.
Dom looked into her eyes, gently resting a hand on her shoulder.
"I remember it all."
Shepherd stood on the edge of the group, Lockdown in low-power mode behind him.
Brian approached. "You good?"
"I'm fine," Shepherd said, eyes on the stars. "But something tells me this isn't over."